


AFTERSHOCK

by unknown_name



Category: Persona 5, Persona Series
Genre: Bad Ending, Canon Divergence, Gen, Spoilers, Supernatural Elements
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-04
Updated: 2016-11-04
Packaged: 2018-08-29 00:13:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,329
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8468410
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/unknown_name/pseuds/unknown_name
Summary: The purpose of anyone who plays games is to reach the good ending. Well, the day had finally come. After all those years of hard work, Akechi Goro was about to get his own happy ending. He was aware a single misstep could lead him to a bad ending instead, but why would he care? He had already won.





	

When people asked Akechi Goro what his occupation was, the answer was obvious. Detective, of course, and a very famous one at that. His talents were recognized by the whole country, and this is why he had been summoned to the headquarters of his detective agency. His superior wanted to discuss the fresh new case in the agency's hands – the death of the leader of the Phantom Thieves of Hearts, whose identity had been revealed to be Kurusu Akira. It had already happened four days ago, but the case made such a big ruckus throughout Japan that Akechi Goro hadn't been able to meet with his superior earlier. He had to blame the dozens of TV interviews for that.  
  
"This death was definitely a suicide. The scumbag stole the guard's gun, killed him, and then blew his own brains out. He got some nerve, pulling a stunt like that in a police station. But why did he kill himself? Was it out of guilt? What do you think, Akechi-kun?"  
  
Akechi Goro, busy sipping a cup of bland coffee, lifted his eyes toward his superior, who was walking in circles around the room. He tried his best not to sigh. He had always looked down on the older man, because for the head of a detective agency, he sure wasn't bright at all. He always seemed overwhelmed no matter what happened, and that time was no exception. He was also extremely easy to fool.  
  
Putting on his detective mask, Akechi Goro straightened up on his chair and softly spoke.  
  
"I do not believe he killed himself out of guilt, he didn't seem like the type to regret his actions. I would say he probably refused to accept that he was caught, and decided to end it all by his own hand instead of accepting his rightful punishment by society. He truly was a rebel until the very end." he said with a chuckle.  
  
The older man frowned, deeply thinking about what Akechi Goro just said. "Uh-huh, uh-huh, that makes sense..."  
  
Satisfied with the answer, he stopped walking in circles and put a friendly hand on the young man's shoulder.  
  
"I must praise you, Akechi-kun, for keeping a cool head. I mean, after you met up with Niijima-san at the police station, you went to the interrogation room to confirm some details with the criminal, and all you found instead were two corpses. Being the first witness to a crime scene must have been a rough experience for someone as young as you. The sight of dead bodies is something that would shake even the toughest people, after all."  
  
_Speak for yourself_ , Akechi Goro thought. The old man was so clueless, it was almost funny. Still, he had to play along.  
  
"Sir, I do not think I deserve any of your praise. As a detective, I have no choice but to keep a cool head. Anybody else in my position would have done the same."  
  
"Hah, you're right. But you truly are one of our best elements, so keep up the good work. I really am glad you decided to become a detective. It is as if you were made for this job."  
  
"Sir, you flatter me too much... but I think that you are right when you say I was made for being a detective. I suppose you could call it... my vocation." the young man said, a soft smile showing on his lips.  
  
"Spoken like the true Second Coming of the Detective Prince." the old man replied with a cheerful laugh.  
  
The Second Coming of the Detective Prince... it sure had a nice ring to it. At first, the teenager was embarrassed by the overstated title, but he quickly grew accustomed to it, and now enjoyed the reputation it provided him. After all, being a famous detective was the number one step to his plan. Even if it had to be a lie. One of the many lies Akechi Goro had told.  
  
Being a detective never was his real occupation. He was actually a professional hitman. Taking lives was his job, and he was quite skilled at it. It was a gruelling experience at first, but it now felt almost natural to him. Just like a cook would wake up and prepare meals for his patrons, Akechi Goro would wake up and steal yet another life. It was never personal, and nothing worth making a fuss about – to the young man, his occupation was nothing more than a job and a means to an end. No remorse, no regrets, no second thoughts, it just had to be done, and Akechi Goro just happened to be the one doing it. Besides, it's not like he killed for fun. He killed because he was ordered to. His plan asked for it.  
  
And now, the plan was about to succeed. All the threats had been eliminated, Kurusu Akira was dead, the Phantom Thieves got scared away, and so there was only one thing left to do. The day he had been waiting for was finally around the corner. Tomorrow, he would make it happen, and savor every last minute of it. Smiling to himself, Akechi Goro was dismissed and left the detective agency.  
  
It was extremely late at night, and the cold weather of late November forced people to stay indoors. The streets were completely dark and deserted, and it didn't help that the agency was slightly remote from the lively areas of Tokyo. The young man started heading home, feeling a bit light-headed from the adrenaline and the anticipation of the next day. It was a good thing nobody could see him right now, for a teenager gloating to himself at night in an empty street would probably be enough to make witnesses call the police.  
  
But it was understandable that Akechi Goro felt exuberant. After so much trouble, after so many years of hard work, after so many close calls where he was nearly killed by his victims in self-defense or by ferocious Shadows, he could actually see the finishing line. He had successfully helped his real boss, Shidou Masayoshi, reach the peak of his career. The hardest part of his plan was now behind him. There was nothing else to take care of, nobody left to kill. All that was left was Shidou.  
  
Akechi Goro was full of glee, imagining dozens of scenarios in his head where he would reveal the truth about himself to his boss. How would the older man feel upon finding out the very son he despised, abandoned and treated like an embarrassment was actually the one helping him all along for years? What reaction would he have when his son would expose all his dirty secrets for the whole world to see, ruining his career even though he had finally reached the top? Would the older man be furious, or devastated? Would he break down, or try his best to keep a straight face? Would he start laughing like a madman while admitting defeat? Would he fall to his knees and smash his fists on the ground? Would he be a good sport and actually praise Akechi Goro for outsmarting him? The teenager sure hoped so. No matter what Shidou's reaction would be, Akechi Goro was going to enjoy it for all its worth, and remember it for the rest of his life. He could see Shidou's face turn livid, he could see him collapse to the ground, he could see him beg for forgiveness, he could–  
  
A sudden, sharp pain in his waist jolted him awake from his daydreaming. Akechi Goro very slowly, very carefully looked down to see a bloodstain spreading more and more on his stomach, the pool of red liquid leaking through his grey jacket. For a moment, he stayed silent and motionless, as if time had stopped, trying to comprehend what just happened. Then, when his brain finally registered the intensity of the pain, he collapsed to his knees, clutching his wound, sweating profusely and panting hard.  
  
"What... what is this..."  
  
Akechi Goro tried his hardest to understand. He obviously got shot, but the bullet missed a vital organ. Instead of letting him die on the spot, his assailant likely intended for him to slowly and painfully bleed out, but for what purpose? Was it someone who had a personal grudge against him? Maybe one of the Phantom Thieves had decided to avenge their leader's death? Those guys undoubtedly hated his guts from the bottom of their hearts. He wouldn't be surprised if one of them had decided to make their move.  
  
He painstakingly looked around, searching for his attacker, but he was completely alone. The person who shot him did so from afar. A sniper, perhaps...? The pain was so unbearable, so excruciating, he couldn't even think properly. Strength was now leaving his body, and Akechi Goro couldn't stay on his knees anymore. He slowly fell down to his side, curling up his body into a fetal position, desperate to somehow lessen the pain, but to no avail.  
  
He heard footsteps coming from behind him, but he didn't have the strength to turn around to watch. Was that person his attacker...?  
He couldn't see it from his position, but the concealable, silenced sniper in that man's hand suggested that yes, he was. He simply stood there, watching the young man squirm and writhe in pain.  
  
"Nothing personal. Those were just Shidou's orders. He left a message for you." he said slowly and in a deep voice, making sure Akechi Goro understood every single word.  
  
The teenager gasped. This had to be a lie.  
  
"Shidou's... orders...? What... what are you... talking about...?" he managed to ask.  
  
But he never got an answer. The man walked away and disappeared in the night, leaving Akechi Goro utterly alone. Gritting his teeth, he painfully rolled to his other side and saw a cellphone on the concrete, obviously left behind by the killer. Before he could gather the strength to reach for it, a voice came out through a pre-recorded message. It was Shidou's.  
  
_"Well, kid. It has been almost three years since I met you. A lot of things have happened since the day you first showed up."_  
  
Shidou's voice was cold, emotionless and intimidating. Akechi Goro was now terrified to find out what he was about to say. A lump had formed in his throat, and he could feel his heart clenching in his chest. He was so focused on the message that he forgot the pain of the bullet wound, if only for a moment.  
  
_"I would have never achieved my goals without your help. You were truly the best and most competent accomplice I ever had. I suppose I have to thank you for everything you did."_  
  
At those words, the young man's eyes opened wide. Shidou was acknowledging him. Shidou was actually acknowledging his usefulness. This is exactly what he had wanted and seeked throughout his life, to have his father genuinely praise him for a job well done. But then, why... why did it turn out like this?  
  
The message kept going. Akechi Goro snapped out of his thoughts and listened, still breathing loudly. He was now shaking.  
  
_"However... you know how it is in our world. This dog eat dog world where the weak is killed by the strong, and the strong killed by the stronger. You were one strong dog, I'll give you that... but it turns out I was the strongest one since the very beginning. Don't take it personally, but I will be honest, you knew too much. It would have been... inconvenient if you had stayed alive. There is no need for you to hate me, because I do not think you are in a position to complain... after all, what was done to you is exactly what you did to many others, don't you think? I suppose you could call it... retribution."_  
  
Akechi Goro could feel the remaining blood in his body rushing through his veins. Was Shidou actually blaming him for the crimes he committed, crimes that were ordered by Shidou himself in the first place? Despite the older man's advice, the young man never felt so much hate for someone than in that very moment. But hatred quickly gave way to confusion. There were so many questions cluttering his head. What was going on? This wasn't supposed to happen... he was supposed to outsmart Shidou and destroy his life, so how come the situation had turned around? Where did he go wrong? What mistake did he make?  
  
_"This is now goodbye. There is nothing left to say. It's a shame you won't be able to witness the birth of the new nation that you helped create, but that's the way things are. The game is now over, and you know how there is always a winner and a loser? Well, it turns out you are the loser of this game. But I will acknowledge that you were a very efficient player. You just... were not efficient enough to win. Farewell, kid."_  
  
The message stopped there. Akechi Goro now understood why the hitman didn't aim for a vital organ. He had wanted him to listen to Shidou's farewell, probably under Shidou's orders himself. The young man felt as if he had been stabbed in the heart. Of course, very deep down, he hadn't ruled out the possibility that Shidou would try to get rid of him sooner or later. After all, the older man never took risks and always had all threats eliminated no matter how insignificant they were, and Akechi Goro definitely could not be considered an insignificant threat. But he had naively chosen to believe he was too important to Shidou as his right-hand man to be disposed of. If only he had revealed the truth to Shidou earlier... if only he had ruined his reputation sooner...  
  
In the end, Akechi Goro had been a complete fool. He had been played by Shidou like a puppet, then discarded as soon as his role ended. His whole plan had turned against him. Every single thing he did, every single person he murdered, every single lie he told, everything had been pointless. Shidou had robbed Akechi Goro's victory from under his nose. He clearly lost the game.  
  
But there was still a very small fire burning in the teenager's heart. He had been so close, he couldn't allow himself to give up now. He tried to stand up, but collapsed again on the cold, hard sidewalk.  
  
_I have not..._  
  
Breathing became painful. Akechi Goro gasped a few times, but he felt that oxygen was slowly running out. His lungs tightened in his chest, as if protesting for the sudden lack of air.  
  
_Come this far..._  
  
His vision darkened, and he did his very best to force his eyes open. He felt so tired, so exhausted, and his eyelids had never been so heavy before. He started to violently cough blood.  
  
_To die now._  
  
Akechi Goro was now laying in a pool of blood. His face was white as a sheet, heavily covered in sweat, and he couldn't stop shaking. The pain was starting to fade away, and he was feeling colder and colder. The metallic taste of blood in his mouth made his stomach churn.  
In the end, he couldn't accomplish his goal, and the realization caused him to let out a short laugh. It was a weak and desperate sound, the laugh of someone whose world had crumbled under their feet. The laugh jostled the pain around his wound, and so he quieted down. Maybe this really was what he deserved for all the crimes he committed. Maybe this was actual justice. He was born alone, lived alone, and was now going to die alone. This end was truly a perfect match for him.  
  
Akechi Goro never really cared about the morality of his actions before, but he was now forced to wonder how all his past victims had felt in their last moments. Did they feel fear? Regret? Sadness? He had never bothered to think about it in the past. Would they gloat over his dying body, finding comfort now that their killer's short life was slowly slipping away?  
It didn't really matter anymore, he thought. He didn't murder because he enjoyed it – it was all just for the sake of his plan. The deaths were unfortunate, but it wasn't like it was personal. They were just stepping stones helping him to reach the victory he had pursued for many years. But now, that victory had been robbed from him at the very last minute. He almost laughed again, but he didn't have enough strength left to do so. He slowly closed his eyes, about to give in to the temptation of death, when a voice snapped him back to reality.  
  
"Looks like nothing turned out the way you hoped, Akechi."  
  
Using all his might, the young detective opened his eyes with difficulty and painfully looked up toward the owner of the voice. He would have yelped in surprise if he wasn't feeling so weak. Before him was standing Kurusu Akira, the person he had killed four days ago. Barring the bruises and the trickle of dry blood going down his face, the black-haired boy looked perfectly fine. He was not wearing his glasses and stared at Akechi Goro with piercing eyes, as if he was perceiving him.  
  
"Are you... an... an halluci... nation...?" the wounded man asked, completely transfixed. Talking was painful, but he was desperate for answers. He simply couldn't believe Kurusu Akira was there. Back then, he had made sure he was dead after all.  
  
The black-haired boy didn't reply. He simply walked toward the teenager lying on the ground and stood still, watching as Akechi Goro's life slowly faded away.  
  
"This is kinda ironic, isn't it? The hitman, killed by another as soon as his purpose is fulfilled. This really was a harsh world you were living in for the past years, wasn't it." he said matter-of-factly.  
  
Akechi Goro opened his mouth in surprise, confusion quickly replaced by anger. He knew he shouldn't be talking, but he couldn't help himself. "Have you come back... to... to taunt me...? Is that... revenge... for what I did... to you...?"  
  
"Well, you did taunt me when you killed me." the black-haired boy answered. There was not a single hint of malice in his voice, nor hostility. Akechi Goro stayed silent. Kurusu Akira continued. "I do not hate you, Akechi. Quite the opposite, I actually pity you. You know, I had sincerely hoped we could become friends. It's really a shame everything turned out like this. Why did you have to be so blinded by your desire for vengeance?"  
  
Kurusu Akira looked like he genuinely regretted this moment. The hint of sadness in his eyes made it clear. "But it wasn't only your fault. I didn't try to reach out to you hard enough. If I did, maybe I could have prevented all of this. We could have prevented all of this, together. I said I wanted you to be my friend, yet I didn't really offer you the support you needed. I am... truly sorry."  
  
But Akechi Goro never heard his apology. He was already long gone. All that was left was a lifeless object on the ground. Kurusu Akira gave it a sad smile, knelt down and embraced the shell that once was the detective. It was already cold.  
  
"Well, see you later."  
  
The black-haired boy gently released the body, stood up, turned around and walked away. He glanced over his shoulder one last time at the figure collapsed on the ground. There were many other things he had wanted to say, but it looked like he hadn't been lucky enough. Maybe he would get another chance, in another lifetime. At least he truly hoped so.  
  
With a small sigh, Kurusu Akira vanished in the darkness.


End file.
